I have a Huddleston 0 ROF and was wondering what hook to rig it with. I have some owner stingers #1 but these are sooooooo sharp I'm worried about ripping the bait up just through use.

Any thoughts

Brandon dont worry about ripping the bait, you might want to use a little bigger hook though.

Jimmy the #1 Treble is pretty big

Here is a pic
http://www.bloodydecks.com/bdhosted/branman/dsc01559.jpg



BTW is this Jimmy from BD?

With the hook on, looking down from the top the lure, can you see the points of the hook on both sides of the lure? Ideally, you should see the points but not more than 1/4 of the bend of each hook tine.
Tight lines,
Wade

Thanks, It is close, I will pick up the next size up and see how they look, Thanks again

yes this is the same jimmy from bloodydecks. I think the size one should be perfect for the stinger. The front hook should probably be a 1/0 or 2/0 and when I put a stinger on I usually only go one or two sizes smaller.

hey brandon we need to go fishing some time in the new bass boat. maybe dvl?

>yes this is the same jimmy from bloodydecks. I think the size
>one should be perfect for the stinger. The front hook should
>probably be a 1/0 or 2/0 and when I put a stinger on I usually
>only go one or two sizes smaller.
>
>hey brandon we need to go fishing some time in the new bass
>boat. maybe dvl?

Stinger is the model of the hook (Owner Stinger(super sharp))and a #1 is about the same as a 1/0 in other brands

And yes we will get out to DVL soon I have a club tourney at Cachuma this week but maybe in a week or so

What are the advantages or disadvantages of using an Owner Stinger treble as compared to a Gamakatsu treble hook?

Thanks!

Dave

The single biggest advantage is the angle of the hook eye to the trebles, when you burry the proper hook in the plastic bait the eye of the hook is vertical, which is the best angle to connect to the wire harness or braid or whatever you are using to rig the stinger.

I am not sure if this is such a huge advantage, however it is a confidence thing and we all know what that can mean.

Disadvantages? I know Rob and others might agree, but the owner hooks are that black chrome color which is kinda flashy and reflective, which may look less natural.

Both the Gammies and Owners are extremley sharp and high quality. The Gammies come in a few different finishes (the more bronzie color for example). Comes down to personal preference...as always.

Later.

--John

The quest for the perfect swimbait hook continues ...

I am and have been a big gammie fan, but have honestly been reconsidering some of my hook choices lately. A friend lost a double digit at the boat when a 2/0 gammie round bend got bent out. I had that happen once but luckily the hook bent out as the fish was falling into the net. More recently I have been using VMC 3/0's and sharpening them because I like the larger size hook... but then I bent one out on a 15-20lb class striper ... and then I bent one out on a big bass when the fish jumped and lost the fish. And that's just intolerable.

So I look at the Owner hooks and I like them, but the shiny black color is just a big mental block for me. And then there's the fact that it's kind of small for a 2/0 and slightly heavier than the gammies... and pretty soon I talk myself out of it again.

I did hear that Owner had some 3/0 samples at the ICAST show, but they won't be out for a bit still. If they would make that 3/0 in bronze it would be an incredible hook. Or if gammie would make 2x strong Suprline trebles in 2/0 to 5/0 round bend trebles in bronze, that would be awesome too. It's like c'mon they make a Superline 1/0 in bronze but no Superline 2/0 in bronze!

So as you can tell I just go back and forth and back and forth, but up until now I have been willing to sacrafice the strength of the owner hook to get the more subtle color and thinner wire of the gammie.

My next plan is to buy Mustads in 2/0 to 4/0 for most of my day time fishing and just sharpen them, and use the Owner 2/0's and eventually 3/0's for night time. The Owner will chew up your bait more, but I don't care about that, I care about one thing, putting fish in the net.

I've been dying a lot of my hooks. Spike-It makes a blade dip (for metal). Just simply dip your hook for 5-20 seconds, depending on how dark you want the dye. Pull the hook out of the bottle and it's dry in about 10 seconds. The bottles have a wide top on them to accomodate for most hooks. But the hooks we're using for the swimbaits are too large. Just dip a q-tip in the dye and rub it on the hook. The black is not shiny and will take the 'glimmer' off of your hooks.

This stuff is also great for weights! I dye all of my dropshot weights. They say the main reason to keep your weight on the bottom, is so it doesn't distract the fish. Since I have started dying my dropshot weights, my dropshot fish % has increased.

I normally use green. It can be applied light or dark (almost black) and sometimes red. I went to their site just now and didn't see the green offered anymore though?

http://www.ispikeit.com/shop/shopdisplayproducts.asp?id=2&subcat=14&cat=Blade+Dip

Here is a shot of a ROF5 with a Matzuo 2/0 red treble in front and a Gammie #1 bronze (dyed dark green) in back. The Matzuo's run small. This 2/0 is the exact same size as a Gammie 1/0 round bend bronze.


http://www.calfishing.com/dc/user_files/2707.jpg


http://www.calfishing.com/dc/user_files/2708.jpg


I know some people don't like the red hooks. But for those of you that haven't tried them, check them out. I'm not too sure about the Huddleston, since I use it more for deadsticking. But on the waking swimbaits, the red treble up front looks just like flaring gill when it swims back and forth.

Attachment #1, (.jpg file)
Attachment #2, (.jpg file)

I like the dye idea. Reminds me of CJ's post a while back about painting the hooks white. I need to try it.

Are you putting the dye on lead drop shot or tungsten drop shot lead? I wonder if the tungsten will take a dye?

I do a lot of saltwater fishing and use the dye for my stainless tuna and marlin hooks used in trolling lures. It looks pretty cool with a hook dyed to match say on a black / purple, zucchini, green / yellow or brown / red trolling lure. I don't know if the fish really care or not...but it looks trick!

Dave

I'm putting it on the lead 'finesse' dropshot weights. The long cylinder kind. I use tungsten bullet weights, but they have more of a black tint to them and I haven't tried to dye them.

Awesome, Thanks guys some great info here

Just so everyone knows, the dye from the hook will soak into the plastic. To me it's not a big deal, cause my huddleston's all seem to be paintless after a few trips anyways. I think it gives them character ;-)

Regarding the Mustad hook, I think you may not need to sharpen it or sharpen it very often at all. Two years ago we were each landing bass at least every 15 minutes on Senkos at a Great American Bass Club lake in San Saba. Started having trouble with my hook, which I found had dulled after catching 20 or so. My fishing buddy suggested I check his hook. Checked his on my thumbnail, and it was still sharp! Mustad has been my preferred hook ever since, and fish do not straighten them. I like the relatively heavy weight of the 4.0 for Senkos. (I came to this board due to the recommendation of Long Nguyen with Bass West USA in my quest to become a better swimbait fisherman. 12 bass so far on the same 7" Osprey Talon and 42 bass on the same 3:16 Shad. I have an order in with a friend for the Huddleston Deluxe.)

Doug fm Dallas